


In a heartbeat

by Reef



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Hospitals, M/M, Major Character Injury, References to Homophobia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-04-21
Updated: 2013-04-21
Packaged: 2017-12-09 02:56:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,699
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/769155
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Reef/pseuds/Reef
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Wrote for a prompt on kinkme-merlin, "Colin gets queer-bashed and ends up in an hospital. His ICE (in case of emergency) contact is Bradley,  and when Bradley gets the call he rushes over to the hospital.</p>
            </blockquote>





	In a heartbeat

The golden haired man was driving on the M25 towards London. Sunglasses on, he was coming back from a few days break with his family outside the capital. And now he was driving slightly above the limit, impatient to see his boyfriend, stuck in London because of a Shakespeare play he was in. He was hoping the sun would keep on shining after those long winter months so they could enjoy a weekend together somewhere. Perhaps at the beach. He eyed the signal and checked his mirrors. 

“Next exit,” he said happily. 

Suddenly a popular tune started to fill the car rather loudly. He sighed and with a hand started to check his sport bag on the seat next to him. He let his hand going in every corner of it, trying to reach the phone under a pile of clothes, resisting the urge to stop looking at the road to get it. He could feel it vibrating somewhere in this mess. Finally, he grabbed it but too late.  
He swore under his breath realising he just missed the exit.

He then eyed the screen quickly to discover a missed call from Colin, his rather sexy boyfriend. He smiled and was going to call back when the phone started vibrating again, this time he answered quickly. 

“Hello, Col, I’m almost there.” 

“Hello sir.” Replied a female voice, most certainly not Colin’s. “We found your number in Mr Morgan’s phone, under the pseudonym ICE for “in case of emergency”.”

His brain suddenly stopped running and his heart skipped a beat on the “emergency” word. 

“Do you agree that you know him?” the voice continued.

“Y-yes” he mumbled, heart hammering. 

“I’m sorry to tell you Mr Morgan has been brought to the Charing Cross hospital earlier today.”

My god 

“Is-is he okay?” his voice was trembling now, his hands sweating, and he was barely able to focus on the road. 

“Would it be possible for you to come to the hospital today? I can’t give much details on the phone I’m afraid.”

“I-I’m coming now.”

Oh my god

“Very good, let me take your name”

“Bradley James” he managed in a strangled voice. “Is he okay?” he asked again. 

“He didn’t wake since the police found him. We are waiting for the doctors’ analysis.” 

“I’ll be there as soon as possible. T-thank you.”

A honk rang on his right, and he refocused on the road quickly as he was deviating on another line.  
He threw the phone on the passenger seat and tried to control his breath while checking the signals for the next exit.

Come on Colin…come on…don’t do that to me…I’m coming….I’m coming….Charing Cross…

Half an hour later he was passing pushed the doors of the massive building, half running to the counter. 

“Hi, I’m Bradley James, I’m here to see Collin Morgan.” He said nervously, just wanting to see his boyfriend as soon as he could. 

“Ah yes Mr James, if you want to fill this for me”, the woman said with a smile, giving him a paper and a pen.

He filled the document in a second, not wanting to waste time. 

“1st floor, room 104.” The woman said after getting a few signatures from him. “Give this paper to the office upstairs, my colleague will come with you.” 

He ran to the next floor, trying not to think.

I’m here Colin…I’m here…please…please be alright…

He didn’t really notice the nurse approving his authorization, or the doctor coming to shake his hand. He came back into focus when said doctor started to talk to him.

“I must inform you on Mr Morgan’s condition.”

“What happened?”

“Apparently he’s been beaten up buy a few people yesterday night around Soho. The police are still trying to find them. Your friend has been in coma since then. He has 4 broken ribs, multiple bruises, a broken nose, a few broken bones around the eyes and he took a few serious blows to the head that led to a traumatic brain injury.”

At this point Bradley was fighting to keep his composure.

He swallowed the lump in his throat and asked. “Will he wake?”

“I can’t say I’m afraid. Those types of injuries are really serious, especially if they lead to coma. We can’t establish the gravity of it until he wakes but I can’t guaranty when or if he will.” 

That was it. His composure was gone. His eyes were stinging and his vision was blurry.

“Can I see him?” he almost begged with a small voice. 

101…102…. 103...104

The doctor paused and opened the door for him.

“Take your time,” he said in sympathy before leaving him alone.

Bradley took a few shaky steps inside and the door closed behind him silently.  
As soon as his eyes lay upon his boyfriend, the first tears fell upon his cheeks.

Colin’s head was wrapped in multiple bandages and a few tubes were connected to his wrist. His face was bruised all over, coloured with a mix of purple and red and his lips were swollen.

…oh my god…. what did they do…

He couldn’t stop himself from sobbing suddenly realising what had happened.  
He came closer brushing lightly his fingers on Colin’s wrist. Gently, as if afraid to make more damages. 

“Colin,” he whispered. “Colin…Its me…I came as soon as I heard…I’m so sorry”

The sobs were increasing and his hands where shaking with fear and fury. He could feel his insides curling on themselves with the thought of never seeing Colin’s beautiful blue eyes looking at him anymore, or hearing Colin’s wonderful laugh. No…No he couldn’t think like that. Colin would wake any moment. He would. He had to. 

And then fury washed over him. 

“Who did this?”

I’ll find them. And I’ll kill them. I’ll kill them for that.

Thinking that someone could hit and hurt his wonderful, lovely Colin, the one person making his life brighter just by existing, was making him mad. In a fit of rage he hit the closest wall with all his strength. 

I’ll kill them. 

He left his fist curled on the wall and rested his forehead on it. He wanted to hit this wall so much until he would either break it or break his fists trying. Finally, shame crept inside him. He hadn’t been there to avoid this. He hadn’t been there to protect him. 

He grabbed a chair waiting in a corner and sat near Colin. He wanted to touch him but was too afraid to. 

“Colin” he whispered with a broken voice “I’m so, so sorry. If I had been with you…” more tears fell down his face. “If I had…” He closed his eyes, unable to finish. “Please…please wake up….” 

Hours passed in silence, only interrupted by the constant “beep” of a few machines. When the doctor had come back, Bradley had had to beg and beg more to be allowed to stay there for the night.

“What if he wakes up? He had said. 

And after a while the doctor had give up and let him stay. And there he was, in the dark, holding weakly his boyfriend’s hand. 

“I don’t know what I’d do without you,” he whispered in the silence of the night. “I love you…I can’t lose you….I can’t….please….for me….you must fight.” 

He wiped his eyes once more before he could fall in a restless sleep, never stopping to hold Colin’s hand. 

Early morning, around 5 or 6, he woke up. He slowly looked around the small room, trying to find the reason of his awakening. Nothing.  
He closed his eyes once more but then he felt it. He small twitch. He stared at his fingers for a moment before focusing on Colin. Did he dream it? Did his fingers really moved? 

“Colin?” he asked. “Colin, do you hear me?” 

He got no answer after a few minutes of asking, and when he was going to stop, Colin opened an eye. Not completely, but just enough.

“Colin! Oh thanks god!” he exclaimed, standing up. 

“Brdley…” Colin murmured, not quite awake yet. 

Bradley immediately pushed a red button on the wall to call the nurse and came closer.

“Shh, I’m here, I’m here” he smiled. “Everything is going to be ok.”

“hurts” Colin mumbled.

“I know, the nurse is coming…just, stay awake for me alright?” new tears were starting to fill his eyes. “Stay awake.”

And then the nurse and the doctor had come in and pushed him out. He waited for hours outside the door, refusing the go anywhere else. 

“He will live” the doctor told him. “It will be painful first, but he will live.” 

And those words were enough to make his heart beat with joy. The next time he could go back in, Colin was awake, looking at him with swollen eyes. He quickly sat back next to him, interlacing his fingers with Colin’s. 

“No beach this weekend I guess,” whispered the injured man with a small voice.

“I can’t see any reason why” 

“You look terrible.”

“Same to you” Bradley sent him a small smile before continuing more quietly. “I thought I lost you.”

“I’m sorry.”

“No…no, I am the one to be sorry, I wasn’t there, I should have been there.”

“Bradley come on…You couldn’t know what would happen.”

The blond man stayed silent, staring at their hands, before asking:

“What happened?”

“I was walking through Soho to get the tube and some guys whistle at people getting out of a gay bar or something and then… I don’t know…I got caught in the middle, they started to hit me and I woke up here.”

Bradley stayed quiet after that, trying to calm down. 

I’ll kill them.

“Are you in pain?” he finally asked, worried.

“They just drugged me quite a lot, I can barely feel anything“ 

“Promise me you’ll never scare me like that again.”

And Colin smiled at him, with his adorable, adorable smile. And Bradley allowed himself to relax for a moment. Everything will be all right now. Everything will be okay.


End file.
